My last Viewpoint at the end of February provided some thoughts on the outlook for Asian paper and board markets in 2025, and it highlighted three areas of concern that could hold back growth: the trade war, China's sluggish economy and inflation. Fast forward four months and a lot has happened, especially related to the trade war. In this Viewpoint, I provide my latest thoughts on developments in these three areas and then drill down specifically on the containerboard market and look at what has happened and where things are going.

The decarbonization of the steel industry has been widely discussed in Europe over the past few years. But much of the focus has been on blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace (BF-BOF) based mills, given their higher carbon intensity.

Leading European steelmaker ArcelorMittal has scrapped a planned EAF-DRI project in Germany due to the poor economic environment and a “lack of economic viability,” the company said on June 19.

North American hog runners price published on Friday was incorrect due to a formula miscalculation. The original reported price of $1.63 has been corrected to the accurate rolling average of $1.61. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated to reflect this change. AG-SC-0002 Sausage casings, resale, North American hog runners, whiskered, ex-works North America, cents/strand This price […]

Downward pressure on global steel prices, caused by continued high levels of Chinese steel production at prices below costs, creates incentives than can lead to a rebalancing of global supply and demand and a boost to profitability, World Steel Dynamics chief executive officer Philipp Englin said at the Global Steel Dynamics Forum in New York on Wednesday June 18.

Due to a system error, the market price for June 2 was used twice in the calculation of the weekly average for AG-FML-0008 Feathermeal, fob US Delmarva Peninsula, $/short ton, resulting in an error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated to reflect this change. Incorrect weekly average for May 31-June 6: $185-270 per short tonCorrect weekly average […]

The global steel industry’s move to decarbonize and China’s penchant for lower-grade ores in recent years have uncovered challenges for high-grade iron ore to live out its value in both the blast furnace-based steelmaking route and the direct-reduction iron process, delegates told Fastmarkets during the Singapore International Ferrous Week (SIFW), which takes place from May 26-30.

Discover how President Trump's tariffs impact the US fluff pulp export market, specifically targeting the EU and China.

The playing field for global iron ore brands could be poised to be leveled, given a recent announcement on lower iron content in a key mainstream Australian direct shipping ore, iron ore market participants told Fastmarkets, adding that the development could narrow the price disparities between major Australian mid-grade iron ore brands.

Understand the impact of avian flu on Brazil's poultry exports and the packaging sector's critical challenges in the coming months.